Kyle Busch has been around the NASCAR Cup scene for a long time. The 35-year-old is practically a veteran in the sport and is still going strong. Recently, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver looked back on his career highlights. To be precise, he reflected on his first win with JGR, which came at the Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Already he had a few wins under his belt, and the Atlanta triumph was his fifth career victory. However, the first four came during a three-year stint with Hendrick Motorsports.
With Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle Busch reached the checkered flag in just his fourth race for the team. Coincidentally, it has taken Kyle Larson a similar timeframe to bag a maiden win for his new team, Hendrick Motorsports.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
How has Kyle Busch performed since then?
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Since that day, ‘Rowdy’ has racked up 53 wins and two Cup championships. In the same year, he amassed eight wins in the 208 season, on his way to 10th in the championship. Throughout the rest of his career until the 2015 season, he finished in the top 10 twice and had a highest finish of fourth in 2013.
When he won his maiden championship, he clinched it, despite missing nearly half the season; he sat out of most of the season due to injury but pulled off a miraculous comeback. At that time, he missed 11 races, but that did little to stop his determined charge.
Since then, he has always been in the top five in the championship, including a 2019 title triumph. Sadly, he had a nightmarish 2020 season that saw him end the year in eighth place.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
In the same year, he somehow managed to squeeze out a win and keep up a 16-year streak of having at least one win every year. This time, Busch has been performing a little better, though he isn’t satisfied yet.